Former Forestview standout shining at Elon

ELON – When Kelsey Harris was helping Forestview High to four conference titles, three sectional titles, two Western N.C. titles and a 2010 state title in girls basketball, she was always considered the steadying influence on Jaguars teams.

A 5-foot-11 guard and forward, Harris usually guarded the opponent’s top player and provided scoring punch when necessary.

Little has changed for Harris, a two-time All-Gazette selection, as she enters her third season at Elon.

“She’s just steady,” said Charlotte Smith, the 1991 Shelby High graduate and former University of North Carolina and WNBA standout entering her second season as Phoenix head coach. “She’s our constant, all-around player who can do things on both ends of the floor. She also does a lot of intangible things for us.”

Harris is averaging 8.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in two starts for Elon (1-1) as the Phoenix prepare to host UNC-Wilmington Sunday night at 7. Harris averaged 5.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 33 games (17 starts) as a freshman and 6.6 points, 4.3 points and 1.3 assists in 30 games (29 starts) as a sophomore.

Picked to finish tied for fifth in the preseason Southern Conference coaches’ poll, Harris and her teammates are confident they could do even better.

“Our ultimate goal for the team is to win the Southern Conference,” said Harris, who also tallied a team-high 18 points in a Nov. 4 exhibition against Belmont Abbey. “We know we can win, we know we can compete and we know that we have the tools to do that. We’ve got to come out, play as a team and we can reach that goal as a team.”

Much of the confidence comes from an offseason program that involved training together and playing together during summer school sessions at Elon.

“Last summer, we had the majority of the team here,” said senior forward Kelsey Evans. “I think that really helped. We played pickup every day.”

Added Harris: “I’ve actually been here the past three summers. So I’ve done individual workouts as well as working out as a team.”

Harris’ numbers and effectiveness are comparable to what’s she’s done most of her career. And it’s clear Harris has improved and expanded her game.

“I definitely feel more comfortable,” Harris said. “I guess you could say a lot of it is growing older and wiser. I worked over the summer to become a more all-around player and build my confidence up.”